Alcohol: 13.5%
Grape(s): Pinot Noir
Localization: Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA
Tasting Notes: The Momtazi has aromas of deep dark berry and roasted spice with hints of smoky clove, sweet tobacco, and peat moss. Roasted eastern spices, dried blueberry, and blackberry fruit flavors stream across your mouth and carry into an extended finish of complex blue fruit and sweet spice. It is remarkable that this level of concentration is seamlessly integrated.
93 points Wine & Spirits: This feels loose and light in its scent, with a burst of wild strawberry lined with a dusty, wind-blown Van Duzer accent. The flavors go deeper, toward dark cherry and a hint of cinnamon, with a cherry-skin grip. For plank roasted salmon.
Food Pairing: A great match for rustic meals including mushrooms, roasted vegetables, wild game, and braised meats.
The Domain: Momtazi Vineyard is located in the McMinnville AVA, 7 miles west of McMinnville, Oregon. The grapes for this wine come from four blocks at the top of the vineyard on steep, exposed, and windblown hillsides. Planted in 1999 and 2004 on thin, poor soils, the vines have a south and SW exposure at an elevation of 680-760'. The vineyard is certified biodynamic by Demeter.
St. Innocent Winery was founded in May 1988 by Mark Vlossak, the current winemaker and president, and eight investors. Ten tons of grapes were crushed the first fall, producing 396 cases of still and 176 cases of sparkling wine. Production increased to our full capacity of 6800 cases in 2004. The winery is located in Salem, Oregon, at the southeast corner of the Eola Hills, in the mid-Willamette valley.
St. Innocent produces small lot, handmade wines: seven single vineyard Pinot noirs and a blended Pinot noir called the Villages Cuvée, two Chardonnay from Dijon clone plantings, two Pinot Gris, and a Pinot blanc.
The philosophy behind the winemaking at St Innocent is that the function of wine is to complement and extend the pleasure of a meal. The characteristics of a wine should enhance different food and flavor combinations - this interaction amplifies the pleasure of a meal. To this end, St. Innocent wines tend toward higher acid levels and more diverse and balanced flavors.
